Rules of the Pool: Common Swimming Pool Accidents

Sunscreen, sunburns and swimming; summer is the season. Pools, if used right, can be a haven away from the Utah heat and worries of everyday life. But you have to be careful. If you are reckless, your fun day at the pool could easily be ruined be an avoidable accident. Make sure it is full of splashes and not scrapes.

Where Do Pool Related Injuries Happen?

This may seem an obvious question. At the pool, right? Yes, but 47% of all swimming pool accidents and drownings reported happen at residential pools. Meaning, accidents are more likely to happen at your home, a family members home or at your friends. Furthermore, it may not matter the type of pool you have. While 58% of accidents happen around regular in-ground pools, accidents can still happen in above-ground and portable (kiddy) pools. This being said, injuries still occur at public pools. Always be careful.

Common Swimming Pool Accidents

Running

The first rule of the pool is “Walk, don’t run!” When you don’t run, you rarely slip. If you don’t slip, you probably won’t hit your head. When you don’t hit your head, it is unlikely that you will receive a nasty concussion. Not running around the pool will avoid serious injuries like this, but will also help you avoid those painful scrapes and cuts that you get when you fall on the concrete. It is best to just walk your way to the diving board.

Diving and Jumping

The second rule of the pool, is to not dive into shallow water. Similar to slipping on the pool side, diving into shallow water can leave you with a serious head injury. You may think that you are skilled enough to avoid hitting the bottom, but your children may not be. Teach by example, and don’t dive into 1 foot water. Jumping into shallow water can also lead to sprains, breaks and unwanted scratches. To avoid swimming pool accidents, don’t jump or dive into shallow water.

Lack of Ability

Sadly, this has become a bigger issue in pool safety than it should be. The majority of pool drownings happen between the ages of 0-4 with a spike between ages 1-3. The best advice is to be careful, be watchful and be there.

Have Fun!

This shouldn’t scare you away from the pool. In fact, let it be encouraging! In most cases, you and your family will always be okay. But you can be more certain of that fact when you follow simple, but crucial pool safety habits. It will ensure that you have fun. But, if you or someone you love has been injured or drowned as a result of a pool-related accident, there is help. We are experience Utah Personal Injury Attorneys and we can help you through a pool injury case.